Marine fish have an abundance of 20:5n−3 and 22:6n−3 in their
natural diets and this probably explains their limited capacity to synthesise
these fatty acids de novo (Tocher, 2003). Whatever the case may be,
and in light of the great commercial value of bluefin tuna aquaculture, it
is important to gain a better understanding of their fatty acid metabolism
to support the development of more sustainable artificial feeds.
To this end, we have taken advantage of a recently established tuna
cell line derived from southern bluefin tuna (T. maccoyii) (Bain et al.,
2013). Using this cell line, we have investigated the esterification into
various lipid classes and the metabolism via desaturation, elongation
and/or β-oxidation of a selection of fatty acids known to be quantitatively
important in tuna tissues.